Sharks: Not That Tasty, Anyway

Not that you do, necessarily, but the Discovery Channel’s uber-popular Shark Week kicked off last night, and this year (its 27th!), producers are again using the series to highlight shark preservation. That got us thinking…

* Only 30 of the over-400 shark species that exist have been heavily fished. Unfortunately, though, those 30 are what scientists refer to as “macro predators,” which are fairly slow to reproduce. This population can’t withstand heavy fishing pressure.

* Macro predators are important because they control, for example, the stingray population. Without sharks, stingray populations take off. (Stingrays enjoy scallops and clams just as much as you do. Lots of hungry stingrays means no scallops on your plate tonight.)

* The decline in shark populations has other serious consequences for our oceans. Healthy coral reefs and abundant populations of other fish are directly proportional to the presence of sharks.

* That said, Palau and the Maldives have been granting sharks protection. Honduras has banned the practice known as “shark finning,” putting 90,000 square miles of water off-limits, as have officials in the Bahamas, which is home to a 243,000 square mile shark sanctuary. (Suggest not swimming there.)

* In July 2011, Hawaii’s law banning the sale, trade, possession, and distribution of shark fins went into effect. (Restaurants were given a little bit of time to sell or use any shark fin–procuring inventory, as you can see in the video above.) Maryland, California, Delaware, Illinois, Oregon, Washington, and New York have followed suit.